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What Controls the Size of the Antarctic Ozone Hole?The Antarctic ozone hole is a region of extremely large ozone depletion that is roughly centered over the South Pole. Since 1979, the area coverage of the ozone hole has grown from near zero size to over 24 Million square kilometers. In the 8-year period from 1981 to 1989, the area expanded by 18 Million square kilometers. During the last 5 years, the hole has been observed to exceed 25 Million square kilometers over brief periods. We will review these size observations, the size trends, and the interannual variability of the size. The area is derived from the area enclosed by the 220 DU total ozone contour. We will discuss the rationale for the choice of 220 DU: 1) it is located near the steep gradient between southern mid-latitudes and the polar region, and 2) 220 DU is a value that is lower than the pre- 1979 ozone observations over Antarctica during the spring period. The phenomenal growth of the ozone hole was directly caused by the increases of chlorine and bromine compounds in the stratosphere. In this talk, we will show the relationship of the ozone hole's size to the interannual variability of Antarctic spring temperatures. In addition, we will show the relationship of these same temperatures to planetary-scale wave forcings.
Document ID
20030054394
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Bhartia, P. K.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Newman, Paul A.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Kawa, S. Randolph
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Nash, Eric R.
(Science Systems and Applications, Inc. Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Date Acquired
August 21, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 2002
Subject Category
Meteorology And Climatology
Meeting Information
Meeting: AMS Meeting
Location: San Antonio, TX
Country: United States
Start Date: November 4, 2002
End Date: November 7, 2002
Sponsors: American Meteorological Society
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

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